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Animal Care in China

Role: To prepare food for the pandas, clean out enclosures and observe panda behaviour.

Type of Placement: Panda centre

Accommodation: Hostel

Price: From

What’s included? Food, accommodation, transfers to and from our specified airport, transport to and from work where required, insurance, personal webpage, induction and orientation, 24/7 support

What’s not included? Flights, visa costs, spending money

Length of placement: From 1 week

Start dates: Flexible

The giant panda population has declined rapidly over the decades as a result of extreme habitat loss and low birth rates. Poaching has also historically impacted on the numbers. It is thought that only 1000 - 1500 pandas exist in the wild; however, some conservationists are now estimating numbers are actually as high as 3000, and are convinced that recent conservation measures are working. Now you have the opportunity to be a part of this valuable conservation effort by volunteering at a panda research centre.

Volunteering with Giant Pandas

Volunteers will work at the Dujiangyan Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, one of four main panda bases in Sichuan Province, Southwest China. The centre focuses on rescuing and breeding pandas and releasing them back into the wild, as well as researching panda behavior and diseases. The base is home to 30 rescued giant pandas. This number increases during breeding season.

You will be involved in preparing food for the pandas, cleaning out enclosures and observing panda behaviour. By volunteering with the giant pandas, you will get to learn about the habits and life cycle of this species, as well as the rescue and breeding programme carried out at the centre. Volunteers also learn about the research and conservation efforts relating to the giant panda.

This volunteer project is suited to anyone interested in general animal care, through to those with a specific interest in the captive breeding of large mammals. This is essentially an animal care project, but will also be relevant to someone with a keen interest in animal conservation.

You do not need to have any specific experience with animals. However, these are large mammals and although they are in captivity, it is important to remember that they are still wild animals and should not be treated like pets.

The centre is an hour and a half drive away from Chengdu. You will stay in accommodation within walking distance of the centre. The surrounding area is beautiful and scenic with mountains, waterfalls and bamboo forests.

You can join the Animal Care project in China for one, two or three weeks if you don't have time to join us for four weeks or more. This project has been selected by our local colleagues as being suitable for short term volunteering.

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